Writing instrument

ABSTRACT

A pen includes a lower barrel member having a lower annular chamber, a longitudinal passageway extending from the lower chamber to the exterior, an upper chamber located above the lower chamber and communicating with the lower chamber by a second longitudinal passageway 180* offset from the first passageway. A coaxial ink carrier extends from a writing element at the top of the barrel section through the upper chamber and an upper restricted base to define a narrow venting passage. The ink carrier enters an ink reservoir which may be of the cartridge type pierced by piercing tube at the top of the barrel section or which may include an ink bottle to which the barrel member is attached by a screw cap. A further embodiment includes a plastic sleeve surrounding the ink carrier along the lower and upper chambers.

[451 Aug. 26, 1975 WRITING INSTRUMENT Phillip Phillips, 30 W. 32nd St.,New York, NY. 10001 [22] Filed: Oct. 9, 1974 [21] Appl. No.: 513,228

Related US. Application Data [63] Continuation-impart of Ser. No.389,296, Aug. 17, 1973, abandoned, which is a continuation of Ser. No.221,201, Jan. 27, 1972, abandoned.

[76] Inventor:

France 401/217 France 401/217 Primary ExaminerLawrence Charles Attorney,Agent, or F irm-Howard C. Miskin 57 ABSTRACT A pen includes a lowerbarrel member having a lower annular chamber, a longitudinal passagewayextending from the lower chamber to the exterior, an upper chamberlocated above the lower chamber and communicating with the lower chamberby a second longitudinal passageway 180 offset from the firstpassageway. A coaxial ink carrier extends from a writing element at thetop of the barrel section through the upper chamber and an upperrestricted base to define a narrow venting passage. The ink carrierenters an ink reservoir which may be of the cartridge type pierced bypiercing tube at the top of the barrel sec tion or which may include anink bottle to which the barrel member is attached by a screw cap. Afurther embodiment includes a plastic sleeve surrounding the ink carrieralong the lower and upper chambers.

12 Claims, 10 Drawing Figures Ill l/IZ

1 WRITING INSTRUMENT CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This is acontinuation-in-part of my now abandoned application Ser. No. 389,296,filed Aug. 17, 1973, which in turn was a continuation of applicationSer. No. 221,201 filed Jan. 27, 1972, now abandoned.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates generally toimprovements in writing or marking implements and it relatesparticularly to an improved fountain pen structure which may be employedwith inks of a wide range of viscosities and compositions and withdifferent types of writing elements such as balls, nibs, felt tips andthe like.

An important parameter in the satisfactory operation of a fountain pen,whether of the ball point, conventional nib, felted or capillary tip orthe like and of the cartridge, sack or other ink reservoir type is theproper regulated feed of the ink to the writing element so that the inkmay be suitably transferred to any ink receiving substrate. In orderthat the ink be uniformly delivered to the writing element, as demanded,it is necessary thatthe ink reservoir be properly vented to maintain anoptimum ink pressure. This venting heretofore depended on the viscosityand composition of the ink, and with many types of inks proper ventingwas impossible or very difficult to achieve with the result thatfountain pens are limited to only certain types of inks. Thus theventing systems in the conventional fountain pens pos sess numerousdrawbacks and disadvantages and leave much to be desired.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is a principal object of the presentinvention to provide an improved writing implement.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an improvedfountain pen.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide an improvedfountain pen structure, which may be employed with inks of a wide rangeof viscosities as well as with different writing elements.

A further object of the present invention is to provide an improvedfountain pen having an ink reservoir venting system, which permits itsuse with a great variety of writing elements, inks and ink reservoirs.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide an improvedwriting implement that uses a low viscosity ink that is ready to use atall times and which does not dry out.

Still a further object of the present invention is to provide a deviceof the above nature, characterized by its reliability, ruggedness,simplicity, versatility, adaptability and low cost.

The above and other objects of the present invention will becomeapparent from a reading of the following description taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawings which illustrate preferredembodiments thereof.

In a sense the present invention is based on the discovery that anoptimum venting of an ink reservoir in a fountain pen is achieved byproviding communication between the ink reservoir and the exteriorthrough a venting system including an enlarged circumferentiallyextending chamber, a first passageway providing communication betweenthe chamber and the exterior and a second passageway connected to thechamber at a point transversely offset from the first passageway andcommunicating with the ink reservoir. In its preferred form, theimproved writing implement includes an upper separable ink reservoir, alower barrel member supporting at its tip, a writing element, such as aball, nib or porous tip, and an ink carrier extending coaxially from thewriting element to the ink reservoir. The ink carrier may be surroundedpartially by a sleeve which limits the air passage to the ink reservoir.The chamber is of generally annular configuration and is formed in thebarrel member and the first and second passageways are circumferentiallyoffset between and and extend longitudinally in the barrel member. Thesecond passageway communicates with the ink reservoir through a secondenlarged chamber which communicates with the ink reservoir through athird passageway. The ink reservoir may be a conventional ink cartridgepierced in any suitable manner or may be a receptacle having a threadedportion which is separably engaged by an apertured screw cap whichcouples the barrel member to the receptacle.

The writing implement employing the improved venting system permits theuse of the pen with inks of different viscosities and compositions, withdifferent forms of ink reservoirs and with different types of writingelements. The ink feed is uniform and optimum and the pens writing andmarking characteristics are highly superior and do not dry out.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a front elevational view,partially in medial longitudinal section, of a ball point pen of thecartridge type employing the present invention and illustrated in acartridge unpierced condition;

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view thereof, partially in longitudinalsection and illustrated in an operable condition;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary side elevational view thereof in a cappedcondition;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged sectional view taken along line 4-4 in FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view of another embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 6 is a front elevational view, partially in section, of stillanother embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a front elevational view of another embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 8 is a fragmentary front elevational view, partially in section ofa further embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 9 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view of the lower portion ofanother embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 10 is an enlarged sectional view taken along line 1010 in FIG. 9.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS In the following embodimentslike numerals indicate like parts.

Referring now to the drawings, particularly FIGS. 1 to 4 thereof, whichillustrate a preferred embodiment of the present invention, thereference numeral I0 generally designates the improved writing implementin the form of a replaceable liquid ink cartridge ball point and a lowerbarrel section 12 which releasably engages I the threaded bottom portionof upper barrel section 1 1. An ink cartridge 13 of known constructionis replaceably housed in barrel section 11 and is of cylindricalconfiguration and provided with an annular heavy bottom wall closed by apierceable or fragible panel 14.

The bottom barrel section 12 comprises an upper sleeve member 16provided with an axial cylindrical bore 17 extending from the bottom ofsleeve member 16 to an upper transverse wall 18. lntegrally formed withand projecting axially upwardly from wall 18 is a tubular cartridgepiercing member 19 provided with a peripheral abutment shoulder 20between its ends. The upper end of piercing member 19 is bevelled to asharp edge and an axial bore 21 having a vent passage defininglongitudinal channel 22 in its face is formed in piercing member 19 andwall 18. The upper outside face 23 of barrel member 12 is externallythreaded and engages the threaded portion of barrel section 11 and isdelineated from the bottom outside face 24 by an upwardly directedperipheral shoulder, the face 24 converging downwardly and terminatingin an outwardly flared lip.

The barrel section 12 also comprises a core member 26, which includes anupper cylindrical portion 27 tightly engaging the lower half of bore 17to define an upper venting chamber 28. The lower portion 29 of coremember 26 tapers downwardly to a tip. An axial bore 30 is formed alongthe full length of core member 26 and is of reduced diameter at thebottom thereof, being separated from the upper portion of the bore by aperipheral shoulder.

As part of the venting system which characterizes the present structure,there is formed in the upper outer face of core member 26, a peripheralchannel or groove which, with the confronting face of the bore 17,defines an annular enclosed chamber 32. A longitudinally extending firstpassageway defining groove 33 is formed in the outer face of cylindricalsection 27 and extends from the bottom thereof to chamber 32 to providecommunication between the chamber 32 and the exterior. A secondlongitudinal passageway 34 is defined by a longitudinal groove formed inthe upper part of the outer face of core member 26, between chamber 32and the top of core member 26, and provides communication betweenchambers 28 and 32. The passageways 33 and 34 are diametrically opposed,it being understood that they may be circumferentially offset relativeto each other less than 180, for example 90, but that they should berelatively offset. Moreover, more than one of each passageway 33 and 34may be pro vided, but they should be each relatively offset from eachother.

The lower barrel section 12 carries a writing assembly, which may be ofconventional construction and includes a hollow or tubular tip 36 havingan upper portion 37 tightly engaged by the reduced bottom section ofbore 30. A writing or ink transfer element 38, such as a ball, isrotatably supported by the tapered lower end of tip 36. An ink carrier39 of the capillary or other known type engages and extends from thelower end of tip 36 loosely through the bore 21 to the top face ofpiercing member 19, and conducts ink from the interior of cartridge 13to the writing element. A clip carrying cap of known construction isprovided to close the writing end of the pen 10, when the pen is not inuse.

The pen 10 is employed in the known manner, the cartridge 13 beingcoupled to the ink carrier 39 by turning and contracting the barrelsections 11 and 12 so as to cause the penetration of piercing member 19into the cartridge 13. The cartridge 13 is vented by exposure to theexterior through passageway 22, chamber 28, passageway 34, chamber 32and passageway 33. By reason of the construction of the venting system,a uniform regulated optimum flow of ink from the ink reservoir to thewriting element 38 is achieved in response to the requirements of thewriting element.

In FIG. 5 of the drawings, there is illustrated another embodiment ofthe present invention, which differs from that first described primarilyin the construction of the ink reservoir and barrel coupling.Specifically, the improved pen 40 includes an ink containing reservoirdefining bottle 41 provided with an externally threaded neck 42. Atubular barrel sleeve member 43 is provided at its top with a peripheralflange 44 which separably abuts the end face of bottom neck 42. A screwcap 46 includes an internally threaded skirt wall which separablyengages the threaded neck 42 and a centrally apertured end wall whichengages sleeve 43 and the underface of flange 44 to permit a separableliquid-tight coupling between bottle 41 and sleeve 43. lntegrally formedwith the sleeve 43 intermediate its ends is an axially bored heavytransverse wall 47 having a longitudinal passageway defining channelformed in the axial bore corresponding to channel 22.

An assembly of a barrel core member 48, writing element 49 and itsassociated holder and an ink carrier 50, similar in construction andassociation to core member 26, writing element 38 and ink carrier 39,earlier described is supported by the lower part of the sleeve 43. Theink carrier 50 extends through the bore in wall 48 to shortly above itstop face and the top face of core member 48 delineates a chamber 51 insleeve 43 below wall 48. As in the first embodiment, an annular chamber52 is formed in the upper part of core member 48 which communicates withchamber 51 and the exterior by circumferentially offset passagewayscorresponding to passageways 34 and 44. It should be noted that screwcap 43 may be integrally formed with sleeve member 43 and the flange 44obviated. Further, the length of sleeve member 43 may be reduced and thewall 47 may join the end wall at the integral cap section with the inkcarrier 50 projecting to the top of the cap section.

Except for the coupling of the bottle 41 to the sleeve barrel 43, asexplained above, the operation of pen 40 is similar to that of pen 10,first described.

The pen 52 illustrated in FIG. 6 of the drawing differs from the pen 40last described only in that instead of the ball writing element there isemployed a longitudinally porous or felt type writing element 53. Thewriting element 53 is of known constructed and engages the bottom end ofan ink carrier 54 which corresponds to ink carrier 50. In all otherrespects of construction and operation the pens 40 and 52 are similar.

In the embodiment of the present invention shown in HG. 7, a nib 54 andthe conventional ink carrier and ink feed are substituted for thewriting elements and ink carriers of the pens 40 and 52 and the pen 56shown in FIG. 7 is otherwise similar to the pens 40 and 52, the

sleeve 57 being similar to sleeve 43 and the core member 58 beingsimilar to the core member 26 except insofar as it is modified toaccommodate the nib 54. The reservoir venting system of the pen 56 issimilar to those of pens 40 and 52.

The pen 59 illustrated in FIG. 8 differs from the pens 49 and 52 in theconstruction of the ink reservoir and the associationtherewith of theink carrier. In the pen 59 the ink reservoir comprises a cylindricalcontainer 60 containing a soft porous material heavily impregnated witha liquid ink. The container 60 is externally threaded proximate its openend and has a barrel member 61 separably coupled thereto by a screw cap63, barrel member 61 and screw cap 63 corresponding to barrel member 43and screw cap 46 and these too may be integrally formed. An ink carrier65 extends from the writing element, not shown, into the container 60and in all other respects, the pen 59 is similar to pens 40 and 52 inconstruction and operation.

FIGS. 9 and 10 illustrate a further embodiment of the present inventionwhich differs from the first described embodiment primarily in theaddition of sleeve 70 surrounding ink carrier 39. Sleeve 70 tightlyengages the upper portion 37 of tip 36, and as shown is mounted betweenportion 37 and the reduced bottom of bore 30 of core member 26, so as toform a seal. The inner peripheral surface of sleeve 70 is advantageouslyspaced from the outer surface of ink carrier 39 to form a pocket 74.Sleeve 70 extends from the lower portion of core member 26 along bore 30and into chamber 28 and abutting the upper wall 18 of upper sleevemember 16. The upper edge of sleeve 70 is tapered, at one end, asindicated at 72, to reduce the air flow into cartridge 13, as will bediscussed hereinafter with respect to the venting of pen 10. The spacebetween the outer peripheral surface of sleeve 70 and the inner surfaceof bore 30 is dimensioned so that any ink trapped therebetween will betrapped there or at most will flow out very slowly by the nature of thecapillary action.

As an example of the dimensions of the sleeve 70 and ink carrier 39, anembodiment that provided satisfactory results utilized a diameter ofsleeve 70 of 0.0950 inch and an outer diameter of ink carrier 39 of0.0313 inch providing a radial space of 0.0319 inch. The clearance ofthe ink carrier 39 within the axial bore 21 is about 0.005 inch on allsides. Also, as noted in ink carrier 39 is slightly chamfered along oneedge to aid in breathing as illustrated in FIG. 2.

The pen illustrated in FIGS. 9 and 10 is employed in the mannerdescribed above with respect to the first embodiment described above.The cartridge 13 is vented by exposure to the exterior through atorturous passageway which allows air to enter as required, but noliquid or ink to flow out and leak. The air enters through longitudinalpassageway 33 into annular chamber 32 across and through passageway 34into chamber 28 which recrosses into ofiset passageway 22 between thetop edge 72 of sleeve 70 and surface 18 defining chamber 28. Thisventing provides a uniform regulated flow of ink from reservoir 13 tothe writing element 38 without leaking. Any excess ink from carrier 39flows from the outer surface of 39 into the space between the outersurface of carrier 39 and sleeve 70 and is trapped within the space 74therebetween. The bottom of sleeve 70 is tightly affixed to portion 37of tip 36 to prevent any ink flow there. This ink build-up in space 74keeps carrier 39 moist adjacent the tip 38 and therefore prevents anydrying of the tip between periods of use. The pen is ready to use at alltimes. If by any chance any ink does enter chamber 28, it will flow downby capillary action between the outer surface of sleeve and the innersurface of bore 30 and remain trapped there. The ink does not flow intopassageway 34 by reason of the outside air pressure from annular chamber32 and the attraction of the capillary passageway between bore 30 andthe outer surface of sleeve 70. Further, the ink trapped between thecarrier 39 and the sleeve 70 prevents any air travelling down carrier 39to the point 38.

The present invention allows free interchangability of ink supplies,such as illustrated in FIGS. 5-8. The ink supplies or reservoirs are theink containers themselves, so that various colors and types of ink canbe stored by the user and available when needed. Fast drying inks can beused with various types of nibs and writing tips.

While there have been described and illustrated preferred embodiments ofthe present invention, it is apparent that numerous alterations,omissions and additions may be made without departing from the spiritthereof.

What is claimed is:

l. A writing implement comprising a writing element at the lower end, anink reservoir, an ink carrier providing communication between saidreservoir and said writing element and means for venting said inkreservoir defined by axially spaced lower first and upper enlargedsecond chambers, at least one first passageway extending longitudinallyfrom said first chamber and communicating with the exterior of saidimplement for providing communication between the exterior and saidfirst chamber, at least one second passageway extending between andcommunicating with said first and second chambers, said secondpassageway including portions transversely offset relative to all ofsaid first passageways and a third passageway delineated by said inkcarrier and extending along the length thereof and providingcommunication between said second chamber and said ink reservoir.

2. The writing implement of claim 1 wherein said ink reservoir, inkcarrier and writing element are longitudinally aligned and said chamberare of annular configuration and coaxial with said ink carrier.

3. The writing implement of claim 2 wherein said first and secondpassageways are circumferentially rela-' tively offset and extend inlongitudinally opposite directions from said first chamber.

4. The writing implement of claim 3 wherein said first and secondpassageways are circumferentially offset between and 5. The writingimplement of claim 2 further including a tubular sleeve surrounding saidink carrier and having its lower end proximate the writing element andits upper end extending into the second chamber, said second chamberhaving an upper wall.

6. The writing implement of claim 5 wherein said sleeve is spaced fromsaid ink carrier and its upper end being beveled and abutting the upperwall of said second chamber.

7. The writing implement of claim 3 including a lower barrel section,said writing element being located at the lower end of said lower barrelsection and said ink carrier extending coaxially through said lowerbarrel section into communication with said ink reservoir, said firstand second passageways and said first chamber being formed in said lowerbarrel section.

8. The Writing implement of claim 7, wherein said lower barrel sectioncomprises an axial longitudinally extending tubular core member and acoaxial longitudinally extending outer sleeve member engaging said coremember, said first chamber and said first and second passageways beingformed between the confronting peripheral faces of said core and outersleeve members.

9. The writing implement of claim 8 wherein said core member projectsbelow said outer sleeve member and said outer sleeve member projectsabove said core member and delineates said second chamber disposed abovesaid first chamber said outer sleeve member having an upper restrictedaxial passageway communicating with said second chamber, said inkcarrier extending through said restricted axial passageway and being oflesser transverse cross section to delineate therewith said thirdpassageway.

10. The writing implement of claim 1 including a lower bairel sectionhaving said first chamber and said first and second passageways formedtherein and coaxially supporting said writing element and ink carrier,said ink reservoir comprising an ink receptacle and including means forseparably connecting said barrel section and ink receptacle.

11, The writing implement of claim 10 wherein said ink receptaclecomprises an externally threaded neck and said connecting meanscomprises a screw cap releasably engaging said threaded neck andseparably securing said barrel section thereto in liquid tightcommunication with said barrel section.

12. The writing implement of claim 11 wherein said screw cap and barrelsection are integrally formed.

1. A writing implement comprising a writing element at the lower end, anink reservoir, an ink carrier providing communication between saidreservoir and said writing element and means for venting said inkreservoir defined by axially spaced lower first and upper enlargedsecond chambers, at least one first passageway extending longitudinallyfrom said first chamber and communicating with the exterior of saidimplement for providing communication between the exterior and saidfirst chamber, at least one second passageway extending between andcommunicating with said first and second chambers, said secondpasSageway including portions transversely offset relative to all ofsaid first passageways and a third passageway delineated by said inkcarrier and extending along the length thereof and providingcommunication between said second chamber and said ink reservoir.
 2. Thewriting implement of claim 1 wherein said ink reservoir, ink carrier andwriting element are longitudinally aligned and said chamber are ofannular configuration and coaxial with said ink carrier.
 3. The writingimplement of claim 2 wherein said first and second passageways arecircumferentially relatively offset and extend in longitudinallyopposite directions from said first chamber.
 4. The writing implement ofclaim 3 wherein said first and second passageways are circumferentiallyoffset between 90* and 180*.
 5. The writing implement of claim 2 furtherincluding a tubular sleeve surrounding said ink carrier and having itslower end proximate the writing element and its upper end extending intothe second chamber, said second chamber having an upper wall.
 6. Thewriting implement of claim 5 wherein said sleeve is spaced from said inkcarrier and its upper end being beveled and abutting the upper wall ofsaid second chamber.
 7. The writing implement of claim 3 including alower barrel section, said writing element being located at the lowerend of said lower barrel section and said ink carrier extendingcoaxially through said lower barrel section into communication with saidink reservoir, said first and second passageways and said first chamberbeing formed in said lower barrel section.
 8. The writing implement ofclaim 7, wherein said lower barrel section comprises an axiallongitudinally extending tubular core member and a coaxiallongitudinally extending outer sleeve member engaging said core member,said first chamber and said first and second passageways being formedbetween the confronting peripheral faces of said core and outer sleevemembers.
 9. The writing implement of claim 8 wherein said core memberprojects below said outer sleeve member and said outer sleeve memberprojects above said core member and delineates said second chamberdisposed above said first chamber said outer sleeve member having anupper restricted axial passageway communicating with said secondchamber, said ink carrier extending through said restricted axialpassageway and being of lesser transverse cross section to delineatetherewith said third passageway.
 10. The writing implement of claim 1including a lower barrel section having said first chamber and saidfirst and second passageways formed therein and coaxially supportingsaid writing element and ink carrier, said ink reservoir comprising anink receptacle and including means for separably connecting said barrelsection and ink receptacle.
 11. The writing implement of claim 10wherein said ink receptacle comprises an externally threaded neck andsaid connecting means comprises a screw cap releasably engaging saidthreaded neck and separably securing said barrel section thereto inliquid tight communication with said barrel section.
 12. The writingimplement of claim 11 wherein said screw cap and barrel section areintegrally formed.